restaurant of the month - november 2009

TRINITY
Three Irish Pubs

TRINITY • THREE IRISH PUBS is exactly that – a trio of connected restaurant/bars at 125 E. Juneau Ave. Visit Foy’s, Gallagher’s and Duffy’s and you will find three distinct pubs. Each has its own unique environment that mirrors a particular kind of pub you might visit in Ireland. Trinity opens its doors every day during the workweek at 11 a.m. and at 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday at 10 a.m. for Irish Brunch.

Foy’s décor includes framed prints, dark woodwork, and stained glass with Celtic symbols. A four-sided bar is at the center of Foy’s, with comfy booths arranged around it. Settle in here, and you may never want to leave! Signposts in the corner spell out information in English and the Irish language (Gaeilge)…just as you would see in Ireland.

A hallway connects the middle pub, Gallagher’s, to the other two pubs. The walls of the hallway recall the artfully stacked “dry stone masonry” that is a treasured memory for every visitor to Ireland. Gallagher’s is the spot for live music. Unique to Gallagher’s is the Jameson Bar, sporting rows of bottles of the famed Irish whiskey.

Step into Duffy’s and you’ll swear you’ve been transported to the Emerald Isle. This intimate space, with bookshelves filled with leather volumes and a corner fireplace, has a patina that seems decades old. The patio dining season is over for a few months in Milwaukee. But the patio’s gorgeous stone walls still greet visitors to Trinity • Three Irish Pubs. The building’s colorful, painted exterior and the Celtic-style lettering on the signs transform the corner of Juneau Avenue and Edison Street into a Dublin intersection.

The regular menu at Trinity • Three Irish Pubs features dishes that highlight classic Irish ingredients like Guinness Stout and smoked salmon. Other menu items might be featured at a pub in Ireland ¬– barley soup, shepard’s pie and fish and chips. That staple of U.S. celebrations of St. Patrick’s Day (corned beef) has been creatively incorporated into a number of dishes. Sample it in Reuben rolls, mini Reuben sliders and Sham’s Irish nachos. The nachos pile thick cut potato chips with cheddar cheese, corned beef, scallions and Thousand Island sour cream sauce.

Salads include a grilled chicken Caesar and strawberry pecan salad. The sandwich board features a rotisserie chicken wrap, pig sandwich (smoked pork shoulder), stacked club and pub cheeseburger.

Weekends, a special brunch menu is served 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Options include the breakfast you would find in an Irish guesthouse. Come hungry to enjoy two fried eggs served with Irish bacon, sausage, Trinity potatoes, roasted tomato and toast. Or, try an Irish take on two brunch favorites – smoked salmon Benedict or Bailey’s French toast. Other options include corned beef hash or ham and white cheddar omelet. Need an eye-opener of the alcoholic variety? We recommend the fabulous Bloody Mary. Trinity’s version includes a splash of Guinness.

While draft beers here include Guinness, Harp, Smithwicks and Strongbow, local brew-heads would advise the sampling of Water Street Brewery Beers as well – ask what beers by this local micro brewer are available.

This wouldn’t be a true Irish gathering place without live music. Popular local acts are featured at 10 p.m. every Friday and Saturday, and during November, Trinity adds an extra show on Wednesday, Nov. 25, Thanksgiving Eve.

Regular hours are 11 a.m. to bar close Monday through Friday and 10 a.m.-bar close on Saturday and Sunday. For more information, phone 414-278-7033 or visit www.trinitythreeirishpubs.com.